Testing Track
by tatantyler
Summary: Software developers are human. Sometimes they forget to remove things they've left behind.
1. The Testing Track

– _Testing Track –_

My name is Kouki. I'm just your average RPG player, and I've been playing a lot more MMORPGS lately.

Well, I would have, if I hadn't been stuck playing this one. Don't get me wrong, under any other circumstances this would be a great game, an instant hit. The graphics are wonderfully designed and the gameplay is amazing and intuitive. The fact that it uses a virtual reality headset makes it even better.

The fact that it can kill me is...rather off putting, to say the least.

Still, even in spite of that one major flaw, _Sword Art Online_ is a great game. Just a bit dangerous to play, you know?

You see, apparently this game can make said virtual reality headset (the _Nerve Gear_, for the curious), emit a super high energy pulse that cooks your brain like a TV dinner in a microwave (in more ways than one). I'm inclined to believe this, mainly because even if it turns out to be false, I'd much rather not risk my life trying to verify it. Getting your brain fried sounds painful.

Unfortunately, it looks like I'm going to have to verify that claim sooner, rather than later.

Mainly because I'm dangling off a cliff that overlooks a bottomless abyss.

Oh, and coincidentally? The guy who pushed me off this cliff is standing in front of me (or rather, my fingers). His name is Gurou. He used to be one of my friends, before he killed the rest. And then pushed me off a cliff.

You see, we met on one of the upper floors. We were surrounded, but this guy gave us some healing that we desperately needed. And then he offered to join us, and I accepted, and then-

_"Fu fu fu...I've always wanted to see you die. Goodbye, Kouki."_

Well, shit. Looks like I'm going to have to end this monologue here, folks. I'm about to fall to a clumsy, painful death. Goodbye, world!

My fingers lose their grip on the edge of the floating island, and I find myself falling...

...Hey, what's that down there? A platform? It looks like a balcony of some sort.

Looks like I'm not going to die after all!

I'm going to have to fall towards it if I'm going to save myself...

Wait. How do I do that?! Do I flap my arms or lean towards it or something?

Oh well, here goes nothing...

...

_*wham*_

Ow, ow, ow! That hurt! I landed on my freaking _face_!

Oh well. Beats being dead, by any rate.

Hang on. Where am I?

* * *

><p>The platform I landed on seems like a metal balcony of some sort. It's really long, though, and juts out into thin air just below the huge castle that we all live on. The balcony's actually made of the same stuff you would find in modern factories. That seems a bit odd, given that the rest of the game is pretty archaic. Actually, thinking about it, if you were looking down from Floor 1, you would be able to see it, if barely. Has anyone else been down here? Has anyone come back from here?<p>

...Probably not. I'm sure that rumors of a place _under _Aincrad would spread quickly.

Anyways, turning towards the island, I can see a metal door set into the rock and dirt. There are signs nailed around it, each reading various things like _"Keep Out" _and _"ARGUS Personnel Only"._

Well, I don't have much choice do I? I open the door and walk inside.

Once I walk inside, I can see that I walked into what appears to be a lobby. The place also looks pretty modern. The walls are made of sheet metal. Florescent lights are affixed to the ceiling. There are a few chairs scattered around, along with several tables. The room is also devoid of life, artificial or not.

There's a single hallway leading from this room. I walk into it, and from there I walk into the first room I see.

Inside there's a small futuristic-looking machine. All sorts of blinking lights and screens are attached to it. A nearby panel holds a few buttons, dials, and levers. A label above it reads _"Weather Machine"_.

...

Weather machine? I wasn't aware that this game even _had _weather!

I mean, I know it has variable temperatures. Anyone who's ever been on floor 28 knows that (and has probably invested in a coat, just in case they run into another snow-themed floor). I didn't know it had actual weather effects, though!

On closer inspection, the dials appear to control several important meteorological parameters.

Wind speed, humidity, temperature, precipitation level, cloud cover, etc.

The levers also control various parameters.

_Precipitation – On/Off, Precipitation – Rain/Snow, Fog – On/Off, Lightning – On/Off, _etc.

I decide to turn a few dials to max (temperature, wind speed, precipitation level, cloud cover) and flip a few levers (_Precipitation – On, Precipitation – Rain, Lightning – On_)_._

I look at the buttons, and hit one that says "Confirm".

Immediately, I can hear the sounds of a fierce thunderstorm above. Walking out onto the platform, I can see and feel the first rainstorm I've experienced in _years_. It's also pretty cold. I'd hate for anyone to get caught out in this. Actually, that leads me to think: Can we get sick in this game? I haven't, but I was a pretty healthy guy back outside the game. Well, I didn't get sick often, anyways.

Actually, this rain's coming down pretty hard. I wonder if it's going to mess anyone's plans up...

* * *

><p>– <em>Meanwhile... <em>–

Kirito was sitting by a lake on the 22nd floor.

He was trying, and failing, to catch a fish. He'd been there all day, as well as the past three days, and not a single fish had even tugged at his line.

He'd gone out to every floor, looking for and testing every kind of rod and bait available. In all the effort had cost him a substantial amount of money in fishing supplies. Nothing had worked.

Needless to say, he was getting pretty frustrated.

_"Damn it, are there even any fish in this lake?!"_

And then a true miracle happened.

He felt a pull on his line. It was a weak pull, but at least there was a fish on the other end.

He began to pull his rod back, when something completely unexpected happened.

It began to rain. Heavily.

The temperature dropped, the wind picked up, clouds rolled in, and thunder crashed in the distance.

Kirito, having almost forgotten about rain in the rainless Aincrad, dropped his rod in shock, where it fell into the water. He then began a mad dash back home, which ended with him inside his home, unfortunately sopping wet and freezing to death. It was then that he decided to check his inventory for things he had dropped in the rain.

Things that included the fishing rod. Along with the fish that was on its line.

He let out a mighty bellow fit to shake the raging heavens...

_"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU-"_

_ ..._before being forced by Asuna to calm down.

* * *

><p>– <em>Back to Kouki... –<em>

...nah. I don't think people even do much outside anyways, besides fighting monsters. Anyways, I wonder if there's anything else in this building that's interesting. Back into the hall I go!

I walk further down the hall, and walk into the next room I find.

There are a multitude of robotic arms with various attachments attached to the sides of the room, and a conveyor belt running down the middle. I can also see a computer screen in front of the conveyor belt, right in front of the door. I give it a tap, and the room seems to come to life, the robotic arms springing right up, the screen flickering a bit before showing a menu.

It looks like this room is for crafting swords. I mess around with the settings a bit.

_Crafting Test Unit – Blade Autocrafter_

_ Mode: [Custom] / Random_

_ Type: One-Handed / [Two-Handed] / Knife_

_ Damage Attr.: +[16] (-20 - 20)_

_ Weight Attr.: +[4] (-10 - 10)_

_ Durability Attr.: -[8] (-10 - 10)_

_ Attribute: [0xFC] "Judge, Jury, and Executioner – x2.5 damage to Red players"_

_ Model: [0xFA24E] "broadsword185"_

_ Name: ["Lawbringer"] / Random _

_ [Confirm]_

I hit the confirm button, and the room goes into action.

An orange-red block appears at the far end of the conveyor belt, and the robotic arms swarm around it. I can hear the sound of metal on metal, and I can see sparks flying. Aside from that, I can't tell what they're doing; the cluster of arms is too dense to see through. Then, they recede, and down the line comes a shiny new sword, with a slightly whitish hue. I pick it up, and give it a few experimental swings. It seems pretty good. A bit heavier than I was used to, however.

I walk back out into the hallway, with my new sword strapped onto my back.

I walk even further down the hall, looking into each room I pass. I pass quite a few rooms, but none seem very interesting to me (_Flavor Combinatorics_? I'm not a cook. _Teleport Gate Control_? I'm not interested in leaving _quite _yet..). Eventually, I reach the end of the hall. There's another door there, this one different from the others. It looks like a heavy-duty door, like what you would see in banks and the like. Despite its appearance, the door opens quite easily, and I immediately see that the room inside is massive and poorly-lit.

A massive steel vault door lies in the center of the room. Several ceiling mounted spotlights are trained on it. A booth sits by the door, with a single button labeled _"Hatch Open/Close" _inside, as well as a few signs. Looking closely at the signs, I can read what they say.

_"Hazardous testing area ahead. Enter at risk of character."_

_ "Sealed 01/25/2022 – Do Not Enter"_

_ "This Area Contains: Trans-Reality Alteration Substances, Biohazards, Bugged Monsters"_

Regardless of the ominous (and somewhat comical) warnings on the walls, I hit the button.

A loud warning klaxon sounds, and alarm lights begin to flash, as the huge door begins to rise, revealing a large dark pit, with a stairwell leading down it. A chair and a flashlight lie by the first landing of the stairwell; I take the (fortunately still-functioning) flashlight and venture into the deep pit.

After a few minutes walking down the stairs, I find a singular lever, with sparks flying out of it intermittently. I flip it up, and after a few seconds floodlights come on, bathing the area with light.

The sealed-off area appears to be composed of raised catwalks and platforms, with poles rising up out of the bottomless pit below, holding the entire area up. Floodlights are placed by the catwalks at intervals, providing plenty of light to see. The floor layout is much the same as the upper portion of the facility: one long catwalk, and additional platforms with various objects on them branching out from it. However, unlike the rooms up above, the platforms do not have helpful markings describing their purpose; they merely have alphanumerical designations.

I walk onto the first one, marked _A-001_.

The platform looks a lot like your stereotypical laboratory: Rows of tables, littered with microscopes, test tubes, and petri dishes. A handful of sterile-white machines stand by the far end of the platform. As I'm walking down the rows of tables, I accidentally trip. I pick myself up, and a stinging pain on my right hand informs me of a small cut. My HP's only gone down by a bit, but the fact that it went down _at all_ is surprising.

After looking around the lab for a bit, I walk back out into the "hallway", and walk onto another platform, marked _B-005_.

This one appears to be an observation platform of some sort; I can see another raised platform off in the distance. Two consoles stand by the sides of the platform.

One reads:

_Monster Tester_

_ Mode: [Spawn] / Delete / Modify_

_ ID: [0xF5CB] "Killer Worm Type 2"_

_ Attributes: [None]_

_ Allegiance: [None]_

_ Count: [1]_

_[Confirm]_

I opt not to touch anything on this platform, and I quickly walk back out onto the catwalk.

I walk down the catwalk, passing the other platforms. They're not very interesting anymore; they all simply look like the first two rooms I found down here. However, I can see another interesting platform down by the end of the catwalk. I pick up the pace, but stop when I'm hit with a sudden coughing fit. I stop for a moment to take a breather, before walking onto the platform.

The platform's lined with monitors, much like a few rooms in the upper portion of the facility. A single very large monitor stands towards the far end of the platform, with what appears to be a desk and keyboard in front of it. A small sleeping bag lies beside the desk, with various supplies nearby. I could see crystals, food, and two or three swords amongst the supplies.

The bag appears to have gathered dust; it probably hasn't been used in a while.

* * *

><p>The monitor reads:<p>

_–__–__–__–_

_ CARDINAL Status / Control Panel_

_Main Status: Enabled, Partially Functional_

_ Players Online: 6,235_

_ GMs Online: 1_

_ Floors Cleared: 74_

_ Game Mode: Death Game_

__–__–__–__–__

_ Game Subsystem Status:_

_ – Error correction: Online (errors corrected: 40,523)_

_ – CARDINAL Self-Check: Online (last self check: two days ago)_

_ – Monster Spawning: Online (monster spawning pattern: "FinalA_DG")_

_ – Keep-alive servers: Online (6,235 players connected)_

_ – Programs:_

_ – Economy Adjuster: Offline_

_ – Psychotherapy: Offline (0/5 MHCPs active, PTMAI not active)_

_ – Law Enforcement: Offline (0/10 LEOPs active, CAILE not active)_

_ – Incarceration: Online (1/1 prison instances running)_

_ – Trans-Reality Messaging: Partially Online_

_ – _–_ Text: Online (current alias: "The Messenger")_

_ – _–_ Voice: Offline_

_ – _–_ Video: Offline_

_ – Misc. AI: Offline_

_ – Failover: Online (8/10 game servers ready, 15/15 keep-alive servers ready)_

_ – Network IDS: Online (No incidents in the last 30 days)_

_ – Physical IDS: Online (No incidents in the last 30 days)_

_ – Neural Scanning: Online (3,765 scans collected)_

__–__–__–__–__

_ Options:_

_ 1. Enable / Disable subsystems_

_ 2 . Subsystem options_

_ 3. Character modification_

_ 4. Player actions_

_ 5. Server options_

_ 6. Admin console_

_ 7. Disable CARDINAL (CAUTION!)_

_ Option: __

* * *

><p>My first instinct was to simply walk away and not touch anything, but a small, high-pitched voice in the back of my head urges me to reactivate <em>Psychotherapy <em>for some reason. The voice seems like that of a young girl, and sounds very desperate, almost as if it were begging.

I didn't see any problem with its request, so I cough a bit and begin to type in a few commands...

* * *

><p><em>Option: 1<em>

_ Select one:_

_ 1. Enable_

_ 2. Disable_

_ Select: 1_

_ Available subsystems for enabling:_

_ 1. Economy Adjustment_

_ 2. Psychotherapy_

_ 3. Law Enforcement_

_ 4. Trans-Reality Messaging_

_ 5. Misc. AI_

_ Select: 2_

_ Enabling Psychotherapy subsystem..._

_ Gathering societal data, please wait..._

_ Activating MHCP: 01 – "Little Child Lost"... success. 1 instance started ("Yui")._

_ Activating MHCP: 02 – "Freud"... success._

_ Activating MHCP: 03 – "Sounding-Board"... success._

_ Activating MHCP: 04 – "Louis"...success._

_ Activating MHCP: 05 – "Group Therapy Coordinator"...success._

_ Activating Psychotherapy Master AI (PTMAI)...success._

_ Would you like to see more information about the MHCPs? Y/N (n) y_

* * *

><p><em> MHCP01, aka "Little Child Lost", is designed to foster preexisting interpersonal relationships in patients by giving them a young child to care for. It is unique for being the only MHCP that can be in multiple places at once; it is composed of a multitude of "instances". Instances are fully sentient, do not share data, and, as with other AIs, use our in house AI Engine.<em>

_One instance of MHCP01 is active and within the world right now ("Yui")._

* * *

><p><em> MHCP02, aka "Freud", is an AI designed to mimic a modern psychologist. It was the first AI psychotherapist, created before PTMAI and is fully certified. It is also fully sentient, similar to<em>

_ MHCP02 is currently active, but is not in the world yet._

* * *

><p><em> MHCP03, aka "Sounding-Board", is a chat bot derivative designed to give patients an impartial voice to talk to. Unlike older chat bots, MHCP03 is fully capable of learning and actually receives data from the other MHCPs and PTMAI.<em>

_ MHCP03 is currently active, but is not in the world yet._

* * *

><p><em> MHCP04, aka "Louis", is a derivative of MHCP03 with a personality designed to "connect" with most people; it is similar to MHCP03 in all other regards except personality.<em>

_ MHCP04 is currently active, but is not in the world yet._

* * *

><p><em> MHCP05, aka "Group Therapy Coordinator", is just that: it acts as a mediator and coordinator during group therapy sessions. It is also a derivative of MHCP03.<em>

_ MHCP05 is currently active, but is not in the world yet._

* * *

><p><em> PTMAI, the Psychotherapy Master AI, oversees the MHCPs and their operation, and personally treats "high-difficulty" patients, or patients that have been unsuccessfully treated by at least three MHCPs. As such it is fully sentient and certified for psychotherapy, much like MHCP02.<em>

_ PTMAI is not seeing anyone right now._

_ Option: __

* * *

><p>The voice in my head thanks me, and apparently leaves. Where she went, I don't know.<p>

I'm too tired to care.

As I turn around and walk down the catwalk, I can't help but notice that I seem to be walking slower than usual.

I begin to feel a chill as I walk up the stairwell to the surface level.

By the time I walk the way up the stairwell and reach the vault-door room, I feel _very _tired.

I take two steps, before my legs give way, and I fall to the floor as my vision fades.

Just before it fades completely, I notice a man in a brown coat walking towards me.


	2. Explanations

I wake up in a bed. It's not mine, though.

I feel absolutely _awful_.

Imagine having a cold or the flu, but a hundred times worse.

My throat is parched, and it aches.

Moving my arms (or any other part of my body) is pure torture.

I am freezing cold.

My head is killing me.

* * *

><p>I looked around; I'm in a rather nondescript room. A desk sits at one end of the room, opposite the bed that I lie on. A small framed picture is hung on the wall, next to the door.<p>

The door opens, and a man in a brown coat walks in.

"Ah, you're awake. I am MHCP02, also known as Freud. I would like to thank you for reactivating me; those months stuck inside CARDINAL were boring, and watching the players mentally break down was tortuous."

I do my best to muster a smile; thanks to the pain, I can barely manage a small upturn of the corners of my mouth.

"You appear to have come down with an illness that was never meant to be; the Health and Illness portion of game play was cut before release. However, if you were down in the Testing Area, then it is not inconceivable that you may have contracted a disease or several from the labs. Anyone you meet after this may also contract this disease. We may very well see an epidemic of disease in Sword Art Online. Other disease variants than the one you are ill with may also arise; the Health and Illness game play elements were _very _detailed before they were cut."

"Do not worry, though. This disease probably will not kill you, and you will recover in a few days."

"In the meantime, however, I will take care of you."

"Oh, and before I forget: You may also have a few visitors coming by soon; all the MHCPs were informed of who reactivated them."

With that, he left the room, and I soon fell back asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>So this is my first published story on . I haven't written very many stories before this, but I've tried to make it not horrible.

This story was inspired by the "Old Aperture" levels of _Portal 2_. There's a reference to the game in this story too, with the giant hatch.

I also wanted to delve deeper into the "innards" of SAO. The consoles, the developer's rooms, the debug rooms, all the glitches and bugs, etc. I also wanted to expand on the components of SAO, as seen by the computer's explanation of the MHCPs.

I hope you enjoy this, and please give constructive criticism.


	3. Pathogenesis

_ – Pathogenesis –_

Several days have passed since Kouki returned from the Testing Track, illness in tow.

The situation in Aincrad has worsened since then.

If one were to look out on the streets of the City of Stone on Floor 34, they would find the streets much quieter than usual. Anyone who dares to step out onto the streets holds pieces of cloth over their mouths and around their hands, in an attempt to stave off an infection. Traders on the streets who don't have gloves use tongs to avoid having to handle items with their bare hands. An air of hushed worry lingers in the air, everyone wondering if they would be infected next.

A newspaper, the renowned _Aincrad Today_, lies in a puddle, its edges torn and covered with footprints.

* * *

><p><em>"It is now day five of the epidemic, and already 1,089 people have fallen ill with the strange sicknesses. It is currently not known how these diseases originated, or who patient zero is. No known cures have been found yet, however certain mixtures have been known to counteract certain symptoms..."<em>

* * *

><p>On a nearby wall, a small orange piece of paper hangs by a corner, wet from recent rains. A painted black logo in the corner is that of a rod with a snake entwined around it, swords crossed over it.<p>

* * *

><p><em> "If you have fallen ill, you are advised to make your way to a quarantine area immediately. This will reduce the risk of spreading disease to anyone else. Quarantine areas have been established on floors 2, 15, 25, 37, 50, 65, and 72."<em>

_ "If you or someone you know is showing new symptoms, please send any information you have to a member of the Disease Research and Containment guild, in a PM."_

_ "Thank you for your cooperation."_

* * *

><p>A shadow flits past.<p>

The player who cast it moves quickly through the streets, making sure not to get too close to anyone; the latest news he's heard is that simply being near someone who's sick can lead to infection.

He walks toward a merchant who owns a stall selling various crystals. He looks at the lone healing crystal on the table, which lies away from the others. Its price has been marked up considerably, influenced by the massive outbreak of disease. It now costs almost two to three times as much as normal.

The player buys the crystal, regardless of the price. He then hastily walks back towards home, intent on spending as little time as possible outside. A few minutes later, he's home. He makes his way to his front door, quickly walking inside. He feels tired, presumably from the running (or rather, the fast-walking). He takes off his armor and slips into bed, eyes shutting as he drifts off to sleep.

When the player awakes, he finds himself dizzy and nauseous. As he stands up, the world seems to spin and tumble in all different directions. A small "biohazard" symbol sits by his health bar, telling him that he's been infected, as if it weren't obvious already. He puts on most of his armor and stumbles to the door. As he grips the doorknob, he vomits, a dark greenish fluid staining the carpet below. He stares down at the stain in fear. A chill spreads through his body as he exits the door. His fatigued and spinning mind can't tell whether the chill was out of fear or from the sickness; it decides that for all intents and purposes, they're one and the same.

He exits his house, nearly falling over as he crosses the threshold. He takes unsteady steps down the street, resisting the urge to vomit every time he lurches forward. As he walks down the street, people take note of his movement patterns and appearance, and stay well clear. A few look on in pity, others in fear. He would be able to see exactly what look they had on, if only his vision hadn't dimmed and gone blurry.

After a few minutes of near-blind stumbling, he makes it to his friend's house. A few minutes after knocking to the door, a man steps out. After taking one look at the player, his friend gestures for him to come inside.

He's just able to walk past the threshold of the door frame before he falls to the ground unconscious.

* * *

><p>The first thing that the SAO "residents" noticed on the day of Kouki's return was a new addition to the typical "player info" screen: a <em>Condition <em>sub-menu. Opening the menu up would reveal a list of various body parts and organs, all marked _Healthy _(or potentially _Severed _for the limbs). Beyond that, however, it had no other function. Everyone assumed that it was merely a bug, and waited for it to inevitably disappear.

The second thing they noticed was a new skill: _Treatment_. Everyone was curious about it, but no one seemed to know how to train it; not even the beta testers. Various methods were tried, ranging from deliberately hurting and then healing people to tapping parts of the _Condition _screens of injured people.

However, when the outbreak hit, their intended use became very clear.

The outbreak was sudden; no one knew who or where the sudden sickness came from. It spread like wildfire across the floating castle, the more populated cities becoming filled with the sick. Quarantine zones were established, with a few players trying to find a cure or treatment for the disease. It didn't take long for players to find that certain items, typically used for potion ingredients, could alleviate certain symptoms, and would also train the Treatment skill if used in this manner. A few players began to devote their time to training Treatment and learning about the game's intricate system for medicines.

However, as the outbreak progressed, the illness kept changing; mutations occurred daily, and derivative strains began to spread as well. This only compounded the severity of the situation. The newer strains caused new, more severe, symptoms to manifest in those infected. While the original illness was like a severe case of flu in its effects, the newer strains showed even worse symptoms. Blindness, paralysis, and other symptoms were all reported by those with the new strains, and the "doctors" rushed to keep up, constantly trying new treatments.

Amidst all this, various guilds and factions reacted to the outbreak in various ways.

The clearing groups were set back in their explorations, due to their members falling ill.

The Army created a new group, the _"Disease Research and Containment"_ guild, dedicated to finding a cure, stopping the spread of the disease, and providing care for those already infected.

The PKers began to prey on the sick, and a guild dedicated to spreading disease had already arisen: the _"Plaguebearers"._

In the middle of it all were the smaller guilds, the "bands of brothers" formed by and populated with friends.

They merely lived life as normal, even though it contained more chaos and fear than the usual.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> So here's another part of Testing Track. I'm probably not going to write from Kouki's perspective in this part of the story or even write about him at all, aside from perhaps a few offhand mentions.**  
><strong>

However, I'm facing a problem: I have no idea where to go with the whole "disease outbreak" plot I've set up here.

In any case, if you have any suggestions or criticism, please feel free to write a review.


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